Ronin hated the code his father had raised them by—the only time he hadn’t used it was when killing for his country—but his father believed you only killed to defend yourself andneverkilled an unarmed man.
Anton didn’t speak, so Ronin simply dug the knife deeper into Anton’s skin, smiling nonchalantly like he had all day.
“You bastard,” Anton bit out.
“I will kill you and enjoy it, and all you’ll be is rotten carcass to be picked clean by vultures. Do you hear me?”
Anton nodded. “Fine. I hear you. I will never go after another omega.” Each word was gritted out through clenched teeth.
“Let the little scar on your face be a reminder.” Ronin pulled his knife away and wiped the blood on Anton’s pants.
Ronin finally stood and looked down at Anton. “I’m sure you can find a way to get out of those zip ties. Oh, and there’s a dead alpha in the warehouse. Might want to get rid of him too.”
Ronin kinda hoped Anton attacked. He really wanted to kill the bastard. Instead, he used the butt of his pistol to knock the fucker out before he could make a move.
One thing was certain, he would make sure they had someone keeping tabs on Anton because he hadn’t lied. He would hunt down Anton and put him down like a rabid dog if he ever harmed another omega.
Ronin wasn’t hopeful that Anton would keep his word, but his father’s words in his head stopped him from slicing the bastard’s throat open and watching him choke on his blood. With Anton sprawled out on the ground, Ronin began making his way back towards the van… towards his mate.
Maddox was the first person to see him as he approached.
“Hey, man. What’s up? Where’s Anton?” Maddox looked behind him for the other alpha, a frown forming on his face.
“He’s back there.” Ronin motioned with his head towards the general area he’d just come from.
“Just answer me this… did you kill him?” Maddox asked.
“No… but I really wanted to.”
His friend nodded, understanding in his eyes. They were all aware of his code and had even adopted it to some extent—although Maddox had more exceptions.
Ronin took a deep breath before rounding the van to the spot where the camp was set up. He looked at the omegas sitting on sleeping bags, appearing much better than when he’d first laid eyes on them, though it seemed like a few of them were missing, and so was Zander.
Ronin was glad. He wanted them comfortable and to remember that the world still had some good left in it.
Ronin and Maddox walked towards the omegas, and he patted Nix on the back as he came up and stood beside him.
“I know it’s nothing fancy, but you will be safe here. We’re going to take turns making sure to watch over you as you sleep,” Ronin tried to reassure the omegas.
“How long are we going to be staying here for?” An omega with strawberry-blond hair and chocolate brown eyes asked.
“Sorry, I didn’t catch your name.” Ronin made sure to smile so he didn’t look threatening.
The omega glanced at the man beside him before looking back at Ronin. He swallowed for a moment before speaking.
“I’m… My name is Shawn.” He finally managed to get out.
“Nice to meet you, Shawn. I’m Ronin, in case you forgot, or I didn’t say”—he chuckled lightly—“…and to answer your question, we should be back on the road in the morning. So just overnight.” He glanced over at Maddox for confirmation, and his friend nodded.
“Yes, we will be on the road in the morning,” Ronin shared. “All of you will be coming with us to my family pack, and from there, we will figure out who we need to contact so they know you’re safe and to come get you.”
Ronin looked around the camp, and his eyes fell on Zander, Cybil, and the injured omega from earlier as they were making their way back to camp.
“Everyone okay?” Ronin directed his question at Zander.
“Bathroom run,” Zander said. But he nodded at Ro letting him know they were fine.
Cybil helped the omega with the bruises down to the empty sleeping bag beside his mate, and Ro finally let his eyes fall on Oliver.
